Daily Archives: April 11, 2021

Frustration as F/V Pesorsa Dos returns to local fishing grounds

Local fishermen are up in arms after the German registered gill-netter F/V Pesorsa Dos reappeared in the waters to the west of Shetland. Last year, the Spanish owned vessel was in the centre of a huge controversy after the crew of the Alison Kay (LK57) posted a video that appeared to show the gill netter trying to foul the local trawler’s propeller. Following Brexit and the “hugely disappointing” trade deal, the UK has become an independent coastal state, but EU vessels continue to have full access to UK waters until 2026. >click to read< 18:26

Innovative Monkfish Catcher Vessel Built in Brazil

High-quality monkfish in southern of Brazil is is driving a local fishing company to build the very first fishing vessel in the country for this fishery. Blaze I’s construction is currently approaching completion and it is expected to start fishing in the second half of 2021. For two decades, seafood company Blaze has been providing premium products to European, Asian, and African markets. Despite the solid commercial relationship with the Portuguese and French customers that the company has built since the beginning, it has been suffering over the past three years with the closure of European markets to the Brazilian fish due to sanitary concerns. That was one of the reasons why Blaze decided to invest in its own boat. According to José da Silveira Jr., one of the owners, the company’s expectation is to obtain a European certification. photos, >click to read< 15:29

The sinking of the Star

The first picture I am sharing was taken in September of 1957 after a valiant fight to save this 40-foot commercial fishing boat, Star, which ended up on the beach south of the jetty. The boat’s owner, Harold Powell, and his son Richard, both of Charleston, were rescued from their sinking craft by another fishing boat, William A, near Whiskey Run, the point of land north of the Coquille River mouth. They had fish on the deck and were oblivious of anything wrong until the owner noticed water splashing over the gurleys. >click to read< 13:41

What’s good for America?!!: Impact of Foreign Workers on American Jobs a Contentious Issue in US

The colossal impact of immigrant labor in the United States extends to Louisiana’s struggling fisheries. “I’ve been hiring workers from Mexico, Honduras and everywhere else for 20 years,” Dean Blanchard, president of Blanchard Seafood, Inc. George Barisich, a fisherman in the suburbs of New Orleans, Louisiana, draws a distinction between lawful and undocumented immigration. He voted twice for former President Donald Trump, who  championed restrictive immigration policies. Even so, Barisich agrees with Blanchard that immigrants play a vital role in his industry. “During shrimping season, we need legal immigrants to work in those factories,” he said. “It’s hard work, it’s decent pay, and it’s stuff young Americans just don’t want to do anymore.” >click to read< 11:05

Maryland Governor Calls for more HB-2 Visas – Governor Larry Hogan urged federal officials to make more H-2B Nonimmigrant Temporary Worker Program visas available to help protect Maryland’s $355 million seafood industry and supply chain. >click to read<

Newfoundland: A Discussion of the Impact of Seals on Cod Stocks

Those in the industry feel more needs to be done to track the impact seal predation is having on cod stocks in the province. The latest DFO modelling shows 3Ps cod deep in the critical zone, prompting meagre quotas to be cut in half.,, “Most fear if we don’t do anything” Sullivan says, “it’ll be the story of what’s going on with the neighbouring cod stock.” He says scientists working in the Gulf of St. Lawrence noted a few years ago that fishing or no fishing, seals were going to devour all the cod and the species could become extinct. >click to read< 09:10

It’s Race Day! From giant lobsters to grandfather clocks, NASCAR’s top 14 novelty trophies, ranked

It’s undeniable: NASCAR and the tracks it competes at deliver some pretty spectacular trophies to Cup Series race winners. Sure, there are plenty of traditional-looking trophies that are treasured and will surely be part of drivers’ display cases and trophy rooms. But many of those are also subject to change, in name and design, based on the race sponsor, and other than signifying another tally in the win column, they might not mean much. Instead, we’re talking about the icons, the staples, the ones drivers can spend their careers chasing because they’re so uniquely coveted. >click to read< 07:55